Bruce Allpress obit

Kiwi actor Bruce Allpress who starred in Close to Home dies aged 89

He was not on the list.

New Zealand actor Bruce Allpress, who appeared in long-running 70s TV show Close to Home, and had roles in The Piano and Lord of the Rings, has died aged 89.

Allpress died on Thursday, April 23, at his Auckland home surrounded by family.

The actor spent more than 60 years on New Zealand's small and large screens carving out a niche for himself in roles playing the quintessential working class Kiwi bloke.

His first role, in the 1960s, was in a Vaudeville act called The Cheeseman Singer Series.

Later he appeared in iconic soap opera Close to Home which ran from 1975-83, as well as roles in Hunter's Gold, The Billy T. James Show, Mortimer's Patch and Jocko - for which he won Feltex Actor of the Year in 1981 and 1983.

His film roles included parts in New Zealand movies like Came a Hot Friday, The Scarecrow, and smaller roles in big studio productions such as The Piano, Lord of the Rings, Frosty Man and the BMX Kid.

Allpress was also a regular fixture on stage and worked as a theatre director and producer.

The Allpress family released a statement today saying his "love for the performing arts was inspired by his mum, who took Bruce on outings to amateur theatre productions while growing up in Dunedin".

Friend and fellow actor Peter Elliott paid tribute to Allpress as an icon of 70s and 80s Kiwi film and television.

"I always enjoyed our interactions greatly, and Bruce's superb humour and wicked pisstakes were the stuff of legend," Elliott said.

"I had the greatest pleasure working with him and picking his brains in the 80s and 90s, both in television and theatrical circles.

Filmography

Year       Title       Role       Notes

1981      Beyond Reasonable Doubt           Detectivez Sam Keith     

1981      Bad Blood            Inspector Calwell             

1982      The Scarecrow   Uncle Athol        

1983      Nate and Hayes                 Mr. Blake            

1985      Came a Hot Friday           Don's Dad           

1985      Should I Be Good?           Neville Oswald

1990      The Shrimp on the Barbie             Mr. Ridley          

1993      The Piano            Blind Piano Tuner            

2002      The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers   Aldor    

2006      Ozzie     Charlie Foster   

2007      The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep     Jock McGowan

2011      Rest for the Wicked         Mr. Maxwell